News linked to both this project and an event.
According to a Reuters report, Nobitex—the largest cryptocurrency exchange in Iran—has processed at least approximately $2.3 billion in funds via the Tron and BNB Smart Chain networks since 2023. Some of these funds originated from the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), which is under U.S. sanctions, and are linked to other sanctioned entities, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Hamas, and Hezbollah. Data from blockchain analytics firms Arkham and Elliptic, along with insights from multiple analysts, indicate that related transactions on Tron alone exceeded $2 billion, while those on BNB Smart Chain totaled approximately $317 million; tens of millions of dollars continued flowing even after hostilities erupted. The report notes that Tron was founded by Justin Sun, and BNB Smart Chain was launched by Binance; both blockchains intersect financially and governance-wise with World Liberty Financial—a crypto project led by Donald Trump. Since its founding in 2018, Nobitex’s sanctioned-related transactions have cumulatively amounted to at least approximately $366 million.
According to The Block, Grinex—a Russia-linked cryptocurrency exchange—suspended withdrawals and trading on Thursday after suffering a hack reportedly worth approximately $15 million. Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic stated that the stolen funds consisted of USDT, which were subsequently moved across the Tron and Ethereum networks and swapped for TRX and ETH to reduce the risk of being frozen by Tether. Grinex said its wallet infrastructure was hit by a “large-scale cyberattack,” resulting in losses exceeding 1 billion rubles—approximately $13.1 million. Reports indicate Grinex is widely regarded as one of the successor platforms to sanctioned exchange Garantex, which U.S. authorities targeted last year for facilitating hundreds of millions of dollars in illicit fund flows.